CCTV Footage As Electronic Evidence In Indian Courts: A Critical Analysis Under The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023
- IJLLR Journal
- Apr 11
- 1 min read
Yogeshwaran B, B.Com. LL.B. (Hons.), SRM School of Law, SRM University.
V. Mahalingam, Assistant Professor, SRM School of Law, SRM University.
ABSTRACT
The accelerated growth of surveillance technology has made Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) footage one of the most frequently relied upon forms of electronic evidence in Indian criminal and civil proceedings. For decades, courts contended with an inadequate statutory framework, namely Sections 65A and 65B of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (IEA), that classified electronic records as mere secondary evidence, thereby burdening litigants with cumbersome certificate requirements. The enactment of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 (BSA), which came into force on July 1, 2024, marks a typical shift by elevating electronic records to the status of primary evidence under Section 57 and by codifying a mandatory dual certification mechanism under Section 63 that now requires both a responsible person and an expert to jointly authenticate electronic records. This article critically examines the statutory framework governing the admissibility of CCTV footage under the BSA, traces the judicial evolution from Anvar P.V v. P.K Basheer (2014) through the landmark acquittal in Chandrabhan Sudam Sanap v. State of Maharashtra (2025), and evaluates the practical challenges that continue to best law enforcement and litigants in authenticating video surveillance evidence.
Keywords: Electronic Evidence, CCTV Footage, Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, Digital Evidence.
